


I Actually Like it Better Broken

by dropofamortentia



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies)
Genre: Anxiety, F/M, First Date, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, PTSD, Post-Spider-Man: Far From Home, Spider-Man: Far From Home (Movie), we are ignoring the mid-credits scene, with a little bit of
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-04
Updated: 2019-07-04
Packaged: 2020-06-09 15:50:37
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,632
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19479103
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dropofamortentia/pseuds/dropofamortentia
Summary: After Europe, Peter needs to heal more than just physically. His and MJ’s first date allows for a few stories to be told, some much-needed emotional support, and a mutual understanding of trust.MAJOR FAR FROM HOME SPOILERS





	I Actually Like it Better Broken

_“I actually like it better broken.”_

_“I really like you.”_

_“I really like you too.”_

* * *

The aftermath of Mysterio and everyone nearly dying on what was supposed to be a fun class field trip left very little opportunity for any private conversations that were not professional debriefings or “oh my god I’m so glad you’re alive”s. This meant that, by the time Peter and MJ actually saw each other again when not surrounded by nosy classmates, it had been days since their mutual confessions and first kiss(es) (!!!). 

And it was kind of awkward.

Not that every other interaction between them while they were still secretly pining was not awkward, but this was a - _last time we were alone we kissed and now you know I like you and I don’t know how to act around you are we dating now?_ \- kind of awkward.

They were finally back home.

And Peter had a date. 

No swinging, no crime fighting, just a teenage boy walking up to a girl’s house and knocking on the door like a normal high schooler about to take his crush out on a cheesy, romantic date. 

He waits outside her apartment building after texting a quick _“here,”_ taking the quiet few moments to glance around the street. No matter how many times he tells himself that he is off-duty, Peter can never stop searching for a threat. Always on edge, always paranoid, that is what he has turned into. His silent _Peter Tingle_ doing nothing to calm his constant anxiety that danger is always lurking around the corner, and there happen to be quite a few dangerous corners in New York. 

“Sup loser?” breaks him out of his investigative sweep, and he jumps a bit more than strictly necessary.

“MJ! Hi! Uhh, long time no see!” His voice cracks a little bit at the end. 

“Oh yeah. Three whole days is a pretty long time.”

Peter’s eyes widen, about to correct himself. “I mean-” 

“I’m just joking, Peter. I missed you too.” A shy smile makes its way onto her face to match the one already forming on Peter’s. 

Peter coughs. “So, umm, do you wanna get going?”

“And where are we going, exactly?”

Peter’s shy smile takes on a bit of a mischievous lilt. “That’s a surprise.”

“Oh god.”

* * *

Half an hour later finds laughter filling an otherwise quiet rooftop, the two teens surrounded by a picnic spread complete with pillows, blankets, and plenty of food to fill even the hungriest of spider-boys and their dates. 

“Wait. So he really said that?” Peter barely wheezes the question out through bursts of laughter.

“Yes! And we all just sort of stopped and stared at him and he was all ‘What? I thought we were sharing!’” That just brings another round of breathless laughter out of the two. 

“Oh my god I’m going to need to have a very long talk with him.” 

“You sound like an overprotective dad right now.”

“That’s my aunt! I’m allowed to be protective!” 

“Sure, Pete. Whatever you need to tell yourself.” 

A comfortable silence envelopes the rooftop, the pinks and reds of the sunset casting a warm glow over their faces, shadows stretching out far behind them. Soft smiles and hooded eyes looked out over the skyline, happy to finally be home from the terrifying devastation that was their trip through Europe. 

Michelle’s soft whisper barely broke through the quiet. “I’m really glad you’re okay.” 

A quick glance over showed that she was still looking off at the sunset, but Peter couldn’t bring himself to look away.

“I’m glad you are too,” a whisper back.

A quick breath left her, and her dark eyes met his. The soft light just barely reaching over the horizon illuminated the worry on her face. “I thought we were going to lose you a few times, back in London. It looked… it looked really bad.”

“If I was going to die, it probably would have been the train, to be honest.”

…

“The train??” Okay, so no more whispering it seems. 

Peter coughs awkwardly. “Oh, uhh, yeah. In Berlin. Beck, after he put me through a bunch of illusions, kind of ended up backing me onto a train track. And, uhh, yeah one of those high-speed trains came and, well, hit me.”

MJ’s eyebrows might as well have become part of her hairline at this point. 

“At first I wasn’t really sure it if it was another illusion or not, because they seemed so real I thought they were over a few times. And they weren’t. But once I crawled my way into a car and passed out from basically every bone in my body being, well, umm, crushed to pieces, and woke up in a jail cell in the Netherlands, and broke out, and called Happy, and had him prove he was real - he was really confused about that - uhh I guess it wasn’t an illusion after all.”

The words were tumbling out of Peter’s mouth at a hundred miles an hour. By the time he was gasping for breath, his eyes were staring off into the distance, filled with terror, as if reliving it all once again. 

MJ wasn’t good with people. She’s never had much luck with getting close to people. So when one of the people she cares about most in the world starts having a panic attack, she’s not really sure what to do other than try her very best.

“Hey, hey Peter. Pete look at me.” She softly touches his cheek and turns him towards her. Their eyes finally meet, but the utter terror that filled his had not faded. 

“Peter. This is real. Right now, we are on a date. Back home in New York. We are having a really cheesy picnic on a rooftop and watching the sunset, and, for some crazy reason, I am loving every second of it.”  
She reaches down to grab his hand, bringing it back up to close over the broken black dahlia necklace hanging around her neck. “Feel this?” A tiny nod. “Does it feel real?”

A pause.

“I don’t know anymore,” the soft whisper of his voice not keeping it from cracking.

“Well it is. Just like I am. And you are. Right here on this rooftop in Queens.”  
The fear in his eyes was finally beginning to fade. His shoulders dropping, his breath coming back to him, his vision coming back into focus.

“And I really don’t think an asshole with some stupid drones can fake this.” she gently cups his cheek and pulls him closer, her eyes fluttering closed and her soft lips pressing against his, and everything in him just melts. 

They stay like that for a few moments, softly losing themselves in one another. There is still a bit of awkward fumbling, but definitely less than the first time. Once they pull away, they take a second to just look at each other. The sun has completely disappeared over the horizon, but the last few rays of light bounce off each of their faces. 

“You back with me?”

“Yeah. Sorry about that.”

“You have nothing to apologize for, Peter. You went through some really fucked up shit, and you still saved all of our lives. You saved the world. I’d be a whole lot more worried if you _weren’t_ affected.” 

“Really?”

“Yeah.” 

“I’m still sorry I ruined our date.”

“Peter, if I wanted a perfectly normal relationship with no interruptions or emotional baggage, I’d be on a date with Brad right now.”

His face twisted into one of complete and utter disgust. “Please don’t even joke about that right now oh my god.”

And just like that they were both laughing again. 

“What was all that about him having a picture of you stripping with a hot blonde lady and it mysteriously disappearing?”

“Oh! That was a SHIELD agent having me try on that dumb Night Monkey suit for the first time! She kept telling me to take off my clothes and I was like ‘what the fuck? No!’ but she kept insisting, so when Brad barged in with me in just my shirt and boxers he was all like ‘you’re disgusting, Peter. I’m going to show MJ because she deserves the truth blah blah blah’ and I was all like ‘Brad it’s not what it looks like’ but he had already taken a picture and run off.” 

“Wow. No wonder everyone thinks you’re a male escort.”

A loud groan “god, _please_ don’t remind me.” 

“I mean, you’ve already got the body for it.”

Peter jerks his head back towards her, a wide grin overtaking his blush-heavy face. “Oh?” 

“Shut up loser.” 

“Pray tell, MJ. How, exactly, do I have the body to be a male escort?”

She scoffs. “Don’t pretend you don’t know you have crazy muscles and abs for days.”

“Abs for days?”

“Yes, Peter, abs for days. I still don’t understand how your freaky spider powers made you jacked.”

That had him laughing once again, and once he started, MJ couldn’t help but join in. 

* * *

Once the stars were shining bright in the dark sky and they had a few more soft kisses in the moonlight, Peter walked her back home. No swinging or crime-fighting on the way there, just two teenagers with interlocked hands swinging between them and shy glances when they think the other isn’t looking. 

The apartment building door closed behind her just after he had left a short kiss on her lips as a goodbye. She most definitely didn’t see his adorable little happy dance through the window as he made his way down the street, and she also definitely didn’t fall asleep with a huge smile on her face and a heart lighter than it had been in a while.

**Author's Note:**

> What is it with me and giving Peter panic attacks in all (two) of my fics? He just deserves to be happy. @ Marvel please give Peter Parker a brEAK. 
> 
> Anyways, I was going to write a fic based on the identity reveal, but nothing has really come to me yet, and I really loved MJ's quote "I actually like it better broken," so here is a little fic of them being a cute adorable pure couple.


End file.
